I have an interest in learning watchmaking and I think that my temperament is well suited to the hobby, but I find that the cost of tools to even get started is a huge barrier to entry for me. Any suggestions about how to begin?
Many watchmakers recommend buying good tools and I agree with them. If I had known this hobby is so fascinating, I would buy better tools. But I'm still using cheap tools. I started this hobby with a very cheap Chinese watch repair tool kit and Rodico. It is enough for cleaning and changing a battery of quartz watch. I found that it is completely useless for mechanical watch maintenance. So, I bought some cheap screwdrivers, movement holder, watch oil and oiler set, watch hand remover and pusher, etc. from Amazon. The additional cost was around $100. I always use a file and sharpening stone before using a cheap tool to remove rough edges. That's enough for tinkering on my watches, including this watch.
I have an interest in learning watchmaking and I think that my temperament is well suited to the hobby, but I find that the cost of tools to even get started is a huge barrier to entry for me. Any suggestions about how to begin?
Many watchmakers recommend buying good tools and I agree with them. If I had known this hobby is so fascinating, I would buy better tools. But I'm still using cheap tools. I started this hobby with a very cheap Chinese watch repair tool kit and Rodico. It is enough for cleaning and changing a battery of quartz watch. I found that it is completely useless for mechanical watch maintenance. So, I bought some cheap screwdrivers, movement holder, watch oil and oiler set, watch hand remover and pusher, etc. from Amazon. The additional cost was around $100. I always use a file and sharpening stone before using a cheap tool to remove rough edges. That's enough for tinkering on my watches, including this watch.